View of Black River Gorges National Park from the south-west

Ebony Forest Reserve Chamarel or just the Ebony Forest is a registered non-profit organisation, registration number: NSIF/2024/0016 conserving Mauritian endemic species with a rehabilitated indigenous forest (including rare semi-dry forest types), situated in Chamarel, in the south-west of Mauritius.[1][2]

Establishment

Canopy walkway at Black River Gorges National Park

It was established in June 2017, after 10 years of work in restoring habitats and planting 130,000 endemic plants. In addition to the reintroduced endemic species, the area is home to some of the few remaining stands of original mature endemic ebony trees. At present more than 154,000 plants have been planted and 34 ha have been weeded from invasive plant species.

Wildlife

Birds

Birds commonly found nearby are the Mauritius paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone bourbonnensis), the echo parakeet (Psittacula eques echo), the pink pigeon (Nesoenas mayeri), the Mauritius kestrel (Falco punctatus), the Mauritius bulbul (Hypsipetes olivaceus), the olive white-eye (Zosterops chloronothos), and the grey white-eye (Zosterops mauritianus).

Bats

The Mauritius flying fox, Mauritian tomb bat and the Natal free-tailed bat can be found in the area.

Flora

The plants include ebony (Diospyros tesselaria), Mauritius coral tree (Chassalia boryana), bois tambour (Tambourissa cocottensis) and screw pines (Pandanus).

Facilities

One of the look-out points at Black River Gorges National Park

Black River Gorges National Park has canopy walkways and view points, and Ebony Forest Chamarel runs guided tours or safaris. There is a museum, snack point and educational facilities at the Ebony Forest Chamarel.

It is located in the Black River Gorges National Park, next to the Seven Coloured Earths site and near Lavilleon Natural Forest, in the Chamarel area in the south west of the island.[3][4]

References

  1. ^ "Ebony - Home". Ebonyforest.com. 21 May 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  2. ^ "Ebony Forest (Chamarel, Mauritius)". La Vanille Nature Park. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  3. ^ "Non technical summary" (PDF). Environment.govmu.org. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  4. ^ "EEBONY FOREST À CHAMAREL: Sanctuaire de l'endémicité". Le Mauricien. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 26 March 2019.

20°26′13″S 57°22′19″E / 20.43694°S 57.37194°E / -20.43694; 57.37194


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